Alpaca-ey Christmas
I don’t like mince tarts. I don’t see the sense in having steaming pudding on a stinking hot day. I feel sad when I see pile upon pile of fresh food left in rubbish bins because overcatering everywhere you step is seen as generosity. And I’m not a fan of the gastro that’s hit me and won’t go away. Christmas carols of both the traditional and funked-up kinds shit me, however, I may be placated if the child over the road refrains from playing with pyrotechnics and trying to set the street’s nature strips on fire again this year.
But I do like baby animals any time of year. This is the latest addition to my parents’ alpaca colony: he’s the sweetest little thing, even when he’s got his cranky face on.
And mum has had a rough time the last few months with her start as a wildlife carer — she has been given (I believe) possums too young and fragile (a 60-gram animal is almost too tiny to comprehend) to have a high success rate and she’s lost a few of the dear things. But little Sunday the possum is going along great guns; my mother conducts midnight raids of banksias in the locality’s parks because Sunday’s favourite food is banksia (when she’s not sipping honey water, of course). Apologies for the crappy photo but she moves so quickly on those spongy little feet.
Happy Christmas and a glorious year to you all xxx.
Crank-o-meter: bah humbug, but the animals are damn cute
December 25th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
I can only emphasise…
breakfast
and the all day
lunch
Why do her rellies
do everything to excess?
Why do they insist on inviting us
though we cower in the corner?
Why do they get antsy
if we politely decline?
Why do they have too many dogs
to yell at?
Why is thier Boxing Day food
yesterday’s?
Why do we call them
Kath & Kim?
December 25th, 2009 at 10:34 pm
So, that should be “empathize”…
December 26th, 2009 at 12:16 am
Awwww…. widdle baby animals are so kewt! And alpacas and possums both kind of stay cute as they grow up, too, which is pretty special.
But, as you say, BAH! HUMBUG!
(Merry Christmas, anyway).
December 26th, 2009 at 10:34 am
Merry Christmas MsC. What a cute little baby! He looks very cheeky!
December 26th, 2009 at 10:42 am
That would make a great beat poem, comrade, but tear-worthy because every word is true. I hope you survived, even if the Kath and Kim reference brought a smile to my face.
They are sweeties, lila, though alpacas remind me of cats in the way they stare and you never know what’s really going on in their aloof heads. But by crikey they’re cute when they’re babies. Happy Christmas, fellow humbugger!
You, too, HH, and all the best for the coming year with all your endeavours. He hasn’t a name yet — I suggested Jerry Hall on account of the long legs but then learned he was a boy … just Jerry???
December 27th, 2009 at 10:31 am
They are so cute… Our vet (who has rescued our dogs from certain death several times) is passionate about baby possums and she would be 100% supportive of trying to save the tiniest ones. I think it is a vote of confidence in your mum that they give her the little ones.
Re: the gastro - are you still on treatment for gout?
December 28th, 2009 at 8:23 am
She is a wonderful carer, The Cat’s Mother, so I’m keeping my fingers crossed she has a good run and builds her confidence.
I’m on 300mg allupurinol for the gout. It’s under control, although the toe that had the cortisone injection is still chronically painful — need to find and pay new specialist types to help find the cause. I think it’s degeneration of something connective from walking out of alignment for months.
Happy new year x.
December 28th, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Happy (& gout-free) New Year to you too!
I was checking because colchicine is notorious for causing the runs. Allopurinol is fine. As always with health info there is a lot of dodgy stuff on the net. This is a reputable source: http://www.rheumatology.org.au/community/documents/Gout_001.pdf (The Cat’s step father is a rheumatologist so it is an area of interest…)
December 29th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
Thanks for the link. All I want for Christmas (new year, whatever, soon) is to find the cause of the chronic toe ball pain. Walking for more than 20 mins hurts and I get blisters because my gait is all crooked, despite exercises, anti-inflammatories, orthotics, blah blah blah. Off to the podiatrist again next week for the next attempt.
January 2nd, 2010 at 1:42 am
baby animals ftw.
I just had a baby crow in my backyard for 6 days, I rescued it from the factory out the back. I wasn’t sure what was wrong with it, but it’s gone now so maybe it recovered.
I hope you’ve had a good NYE/NYD, it’s been a pleasure reading your blog, keep it up xo
January 2nd, 2010 at 9:22 am
I adore crows, or little ravens as they’re apparently called in Victoria. I was at the vet’s one day to collect one of the dogs and my vet was performing surgery on a complaining crow, telling it to please be quiet as it will feel much better afterwards. Then he gave me a fascinating lecture about crows and their intelligence as he patched it up. Odd moment, but fun. Perhaps yours was only new from the nest and exhausted from the heat and was strong enough to find its own way now. Definitely good karma!
Thanks for the kind words. I’m all restless and tetchy, but that seems to be normal :-).